November 13th, 2018
Location When scouting for the best land to buy in Florida, make sure it is secluded and away from the city, but not too far. Typically, a distance of less than 3 hours away is a good idea because it’s close enough that you can hunt and return home on the same day. Especially if…
November 8th, 2018
Economic Benefits Organic agriculture is a fast growing section of agriculture and a growing market. It has created jobs and promoted the economy. There are some steps involved in entering the market, including obtaining your USDA Organic Certification. But, with over 22,000 certified organic farms and businesses in the U.S. As consumer demand grows for…
November 6th, 2018
What is a USDA Organic Certification? Organic refers to a specific way of growing and processing foods and is defined as produce which is grown, packaged and stored without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides or irradiation. Farmers with a USDA Organic Certification use a blend of old and new technologies as well as…
January 18th, 2018
Real estate is space for people to live in, work in, shop in, and store things in. More people means more demand for real estate. Populations trends are very positive for Florida, the I-4 corridor, and Polk County. Our firm is positioned in the center of this expanding population and we understand the opportunities it…
October 7th, 2016
South Florida sugar cane acreage and production boomed in the early 1960s when the U.S. stopped importing sugar from Cuba. That was a much different scenario from sugar cane’s unspectacular introduction into North Florida nearly two centuries earlier. “Florida’s first major sugar cane operations arrived while the British had possession of the territory in the…
October 5th, 2016
Peter A. Demens and Henry M. Flagler The year 1885 was a memorable one in Florida railroad history. Peter A. Demens and Henry M. Flagler both began their railroad careers then and went on to become famous as Florida railroad barons. DEMENS The Florida History Internet Center (FHIC) reports that Demens, whom it describes as…
October 1st, 2016
William D. Chipley and Henry B. Plant Businessmen commonly referred to as “railroad barons” solved Florida’s post-Civil War transportation problems and helped get the economy rolling by building more than 3,000 miles of railroad from 1874-1900. “Their domain contained more than just railroad track – they built hotels, roads and villages,” the Florida History Internet…
September 28th, 2016
Florida railroad history and Florida land history often go hand-in-hand. That’s certainly the case when it comes to Florida’s first steam-powered railroad, the Lake Wimico & St. Joseph Railroad in the panhandle near the Gulf of Mexico. “On Sept. 5, 1836, the Lake Wimico & St. Joseph Railroad ran its first train from the Apalachicola…
September 23rd, 2016
Many Floridians were cut off from the rest of the country following the Civil War. “Florida had few roads and needed to build more railroads,” states “Growth of Florida Railroads,” a website of the University of South Florida’s Florida Center for Instructional Technology (FCIT). “Unfortunately, the state was in debt from the Civil War and…
September 22nd, 2016
New Smyrna Beach on Florida’s northeast coast today draws tourists and water sports enthusiasts to the Atlantic Ocean south of the more populous and hectic Daytona Beach area. The paradoxically named city got its start as a British agricultural colony approximately two-and-a-half centuries ago. Soon after taking control of Florida from Spain in 1863, the…
